Empowering Tomorrow’s Climate Leaders: RMI Summer 2024 Internship Recap
Building hope, skills, and impact: How RMI interns are shaping a sustainable, zero-carbon future.
Strengthening the Future of Sustainability
With one of the hottest summers on record behind us, I’ve found myself in conversations with friends and family who are experiencing climate anxiety and questioning the path to a cleaner, brighter future. Those around me — from my hometown of Portland, Oregon, to New York City, where I attend Columbia University — have developed reasonable doubts and fears about what a summer in 2050 might look like.
Luckily, I’ve spent this summer as a development intern at RMI — witnessing firsthand all the work and dedication it takes to fund a clean, prosperous, zero-carbon future for all. Within my first few minutes at the organization, I realized how vital the development team’s fundraising efforts are for sustaining the critical work of RMI. Learning about how development collaborates closely with the other teams within the organization to communicate our work and its impact was surprising to me — and truly showed me the importance of contributing to non-profits so they can continue their important efforts.
I’ve also connected with other interns and employees outside of my team, who are doing remarkable work on worldwide teams focused on carbon-free transportation, electricity, and more. Although the summer’s climate news could have ramped up my own climate anxiety, my time at RMI has taught me to view things through a lens of “applied hope,” which has inspired me to pursue a career in the climate sector.
At RMI, the internship program is helping build the next generation of energy and climate leaders. It provides a unique platform for interns to engage in hands-on projects, gain invaluable experience, and contribute to meaningful change.
Cultivating the Next Generation
Each summer, RMI welcomes interns for roughly 12 weeks of integrative project work within programs across the organization. Since its inception, the RMI Summer Intern Program has offered a mutually beneficial arrangement: interns gain practical experience within a globally esteemed organization while receiving competitive pay and learning opportunities. In return, RMI acquires fresh perspectives and meaningful contributions from interns’ projects.
The program also acts as a talent pipeline, enabling interns to explore potential careers at RMI and facilitating seamless transitions into permanent roles within the organization or elsewhere. A notable example is Madeline Weir on the Carbon-Free Buildings team, who was an intern in 2020.
Madeline worked on the Multifamily Affordable Housing team as an intern, communicating the benefits of deep energy retrofits across the US. Her efforts supported the strategies and eventual implementation of these retrofits in several states. Madeline credits her past internship role as pivotal for her career. She says her journey “has since advanced into specialized roles within building decarbonization and clean energy economic development, continuously enriching my expertise.”
Will Hinz, RMI’s Learning & Development Specialist, is also a former intern and explains how RMI directly impacted his career trajectory. During his internship, Will helped optimize employee retention and internal leadership development by improving our employee mentoring framework. He also designed and delivered professional development training for interns, elevating their performance and experience and positioning RMI to attract this top talent.
Like many other former interns, Will says that the internship allowed him to showcase his skills and believes that “the experience I gained as an intern has been invaluable in my current role, where I continue to contribute to RMI’s mission by supporting the growth and development of our staff.”
The promise of this fully embedded and hands-on experience makes RMI internships competitive among applicants. This summer’s diverse and multi-talented cohort of 48 interns came from an initial pool of more than 3,500 applicants. The experience gained through the RMI internship is unparalleled, preparing participants to address global sustainability issues head-on. RMI interns have tackled challenges that have real-world implications and substantively contribute to RMI’s work, from decarbonizing electricity and improving energy efficiency to revolutionizing transportation and industrial processes.
Our Summer 2024 Interns by the Numbers
Interns also aren’t left to navigate the complexities of clean energy alone. They all work directly with an intern manager, and RMI pairs each intern with an Intern Buddy, ensuring guidance and support throughout their journey while providing opportunities to collaborate with passionate individuals from diverse backgrounds. The program also offers workshops, seminars, and networking events.
RMI also has several funding relationships with different universities, such as the Schneider Fellows Program at Stanford through the Stanford Haas Center for Public Service. RMI has received funding for fellows from Stanford since 2002. Schneider Fellows must have a scope of work directly linked to sustainable energy and impact but do not need to come from a specific degree program. RMI also partners with Duke University on the Stanback Internship Program — funded by Duke Alumni Fred and Alice Stanback. Since 2004, RMI has received funding to support numerous Duke interns interested in sustainability and energy each summer.
At the end of each internship, interns present their work and summer projects in presentations open to the entire organization. For me, although it was nerve-racking, this experience was an excellent way for me to hone my presentation skills while learning how to convey information to an audience.
Summer 2024 Highlights
This year’s intern cohort brought great energy, creativity, and dedication, contributing to some of our most ambitious projects yet. From decarbonizing transportation to advancing renewable energy technologies, every project helps advance RMI’s mission to transform the global energy system to secure a clean, prosperous, zero-carbon future for all. Here’s a glimpse into some of their journeys and accomplishments.
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Looking Ahead
My summer with RMI has brought me great surprises (like the incredible view of the Statue of Liberty from our NYC office) and great learning experiences about the climate non-profit and development world that I will carry with me in my personal career aspirations.
As the 2024 RMI intern cohort bids farewell to our summer internships, we reflect on our time at RMI with pride and gratitude. We’re excited to see where our careers take us and look forward to staying connected with each other and RMI as we do our part to shape a more sustainable future.
To our interns, on behalf of everyone at RMI, thank you for your dedication, enthusiasm, and the positive energy you brought to RMI. Your legacy will inspire us as we continue our quest for a clean, prosperous, zero-carbon future. Here’s to the summer of 2024 and the incredible impact you’ve made!
